Thursday, July 13, 2017

German News, Thursday Morning

Hamburg riots on public forum: Focus article. Well, it started. The public TV chat forums started covering the Hamburg riots last night. From the Maischberger chat-show (ARD), they brought in a retired CDU political figure who would be considered a fairly patient guy and thoughtful. The guy, Wolfgang Bosbach. At some point in the episode, the Green Party member at the forum....Jutta Ditfurth....launched into a critical piece about police violence and the harm brought by the police actions. Bosbach sat to some degree, and then told Frau Maischberger....the moderator....he just wasn't going to sit in the presence of Frau Ditfurth any longer. He didn't insult Ditfurth, but it was obvious that the insults being tossed at the Hamburg police were not going to be accepted by him. Then he got up in the middle of the talk and left. Curiously, the moderator then told Ditfurth that she needed to leave as well....but she refused. She simply sat there the rest of the show....not being fielded questions. I would offer the observation that both the Green Party and Linke Party (strong supporters of the anti-capitalists in the past....are treading on thin ice in an election season, and likely to lose a point or two on their slim margins....the public isn't that happy about the riots in Hamburg and the damage done.

Never to be home: Huff-Post column. A Syrian gal who relocated into Germany as the civil war started up....kinda admits that no matter how long she stays in Germany....she will not consider it home. No one takes polls like this or widely asks the the question, but I would suspect that more than half the adult population of Syrians who came into Germany.....feel the same way. If the ISIS conflict were to ever end....one might suspect that half of the refugees would drift back to Syria within two years. Those under 18? Most of them will prefer to stay in Germany, I think.Riots playing into political season: Focus wrote up an interesting piece which discusses the plus-up for the CDU and CSU with more security talk. The SPD, Greens and Linke Party are kinda pushed into the corner....this isn't their favorite topic. For the next two months....it'll likely be topic number one or two. If I were to take a guess....some parties will take a one-point hit minimum in the election standings....with the CDU and CSU gaining a point or two. We might approach the September election with the combined CDU/CSU effort near 42-percent, which would be a shocker over where people back in January expected the numbers to stand.

Ban of matting-like material discussed in Hessen: Regional HR network covered this topic yesterday. Local architects in Hessen are talking about a ban of the material that triggered the London apartment tower fire. Strong sentiment that it's not safe and they won't sign up to use the material in their plans.

Fallout continues: SWR piece. From the episode of the juvenile 13-year old kid who tried to bomb the Xmas market in Ludwigshafen back around Xmas.....then the discover of his caretaker being a Salafistian.....it's been almost a week since the news of this came out. Political folks in the Pfalz are lined up to either defend the Green Party minister in charge of the juvenile process or to criticize her. The CDU regionally....took the position yesterday that a protective arm of the government needs to exist and oversee this process around the clock...preventing this from ever happening again. In terms of screw-ups....on a scale of one to ten....this is one of those rare occasions that I'd actually go to an 'eleven' to assess the incompetent nature of government authority.

Takeover bids to be limited: Germany is drifting up a law that would limit the purchase of German companies by outside sources (namely China). What has been noted over the past couple of years is the growth of German technology companies (in various sectors) being bought and the technology transfer process occurring. About the only thing of value that keeps Germany alive economically....is technology. If they lose control of this....the economy will falter. This piece by SWR covers the discussion. My guess is that some reaction by China will occur and Germans might be unhappy over the reaction.Alcohol ban talked about: N-TV article. Alcohol ban being discussed by political authority on Spanish islands of Ibiza and Mallorca, for flights (assuming both incoming and outgoing). They talk to the anti-social behavior of guests (not just Germans). This would not only cover the planes, but also the airports themselves. They'd also like for the EU to get involved (you can imagine the length of the law draft if the EU tries to write it). The serious nature of this? About every two weeks, you read of some big episode where cops had to step in and take down a drunken individual or group who were on holiday in the region.

Mafia growth in Germany: Long N-TV article. Serious growth in the mafia industry....money-laundering is now a full-time job for a large assortment of mafia members. Article worth reading. German laws simply aren't up to date to handle this type of situation.

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This essay log is written by an American who offers wit and sarcasm on Germany, Germans, Germanology, German political figures, German TV, German beer, German food, German humor (or lack of), German habits, German weirdness, German news, German autos, German brilliance, German stupidity, German customs, German Nazis, German history, and German stubbornness.

I was one of those Americans who did over twenty years of military time....married a German....and eventually returned as a retiree.

I'm one of the few who stood under the German umbrella.....paid German taxes for some years.....German social security.....and felt the various pains like Germans.

So, this is my all-purpose commentary essay, designed for Americans mostly (and those Germans who accidentally discover it). I tend to put German culture into the spotlight of sarcasm, wit and humor. I'm simply pointing out the richness and craziness of life in Germany, which even some Germans can't understand.

The amusing thing is that I'm merely repeating the exercise that Mark Twain performed in 1880, when he published "A Tramp Abroad". Various comments were dished out on the Germans....which apparently did not trigger any wars, chaos, climate change, or ill feelings.